Wow, these shots are incredible. When someone asks me what Christmas really looks like, I'll show them these as part of my response. It's lovely that you an your wife are making an effort on bringing magic back to your Christmas, for your kids, even though they're all grown up. I'm sure they will love it!
I'm kind of living vicariously through you in this matter. I moved to my current place rather recently and Christmassy decoration hasn't been among my priorities. I'm regretting that a bit, so I'm thinking about making DIY stuff to put around the place. I don't like bright reds and greens, I'd rather have nice, soft lights and silver/gold ornaments.
Btw, it's so cool that most of your decoration pieces have a story behind. I really like that.
Thanks for the comment. You really should make some ornaments and stuff to put around the house to help brighten things up.